The Road's End
by Avengesuperwholock
Summary: Sam and Dean are dead for good, and they're kind of okay with it. The world has been saved and they are now reunited with all of their lost loved ones in heaven. But life can't all be happy, not for hunters, and there is a lot of drama and danger in store for the Winchesters. A sequel to A Different Road, but can be read separately. Requests for scenes from heaven are welcome.
1. Chapter One: Remember This?

**Chapter One: Remember This?**

"Remember the first time we ever hunted a werewolf?" Sam asked with a light smile on his face, enjoying the pleasant familiarity of wind whipping through his hair and the low thrum of the Impala's engine.

Dean chuckled, a low and warm sound that made his smile widen. "How could I forget? That was the first time you beat both me and Dad to the kill. Oh, I still remember the look on his face when he realized a skinny little tween killed a werewolf before he could."

"And he thought I wasn't ready to hunt," Sam smirked.

"Well, you sure proved him wrong."

"Damn right."

They drove along in comfortable silence for a couples of minutes, just enjoying the scenery speed past as Dean wound his way past mountains and forests and lakes down an endlessly stretching highway. The sun was warm on Sam's skin, the breeze from the open car windows keeping him from getting hot, and the familiar leather seat comfortable underneath him. He was in his favorite car with a beer in his hand and his brother by his side. It was like heaven.

Which, funnily enough, it actually was.

"What about that haunting we worked at a Catholic school?" Dean reminisced. "Remember, we had to go undercover because the ghost was going after falsely religious students?"

"And you were its first target," Sam muttered. "Yeah, I could never forget that."

"Oh, don't sound so bummed, Sammy!" his older brother laughed. "I survived, didn't I? And think of all those cute Catholic girls in those sexy little uniforms I got to mess around with before that!"

"I would really rather not think about that. And wasn't the whole point of the uniform to be modest and keep them from dressing too provocatively?"

"Didn't work very well," Dean chuckled, and Sam found himself shaking his head. Normally, his brother's dirty sense of humor was annoying to him in an endearing sort of way, but right now there was nothing Dean could do to annoy him. He was just too glad to be in heaven alongside his brother.

Even if that had meant them both dying once and for all.

Dean seemed to sense the change in Sam's mood and so he changed the subject from reminiscing about funny anecdotes from their past to a heavier topic. "So, Sammy…what are you looking forward to most, now that you're dead?"

"I honestly don't know," Sam admitted. "I mean…I never really pictured myself being the retirement type of guy. But now that we're here…I don't know, it's kind of nice, knowing it's not our job to be out there risking our lives to save the world or die trying."

"Well, I know what I'm looking forward to the most," Dean said after a moment, and Sam turned to look at him, quirking an eyebrow curiously. A goofy grin spread across his face and he smirked, "Heaven sex." Sam rolled his eyes, but Dean continued anyway. "I mean, it's heaven, right? Everything's got to be better. I mean, the Impala runs smoother, the breeze is cooler, the sun is brighter, the air is cleaner…so I've just got to assume that sex is gonna be that much better, too."

"Well, sorry, Dean, but I won't be much help there," Sam smirked. "You had better go find Julie for that."

A far-off look came into Dean's eyes at the mention of his beloved girlfriend. "I'm so glad she's here, Sammy," Dean admitted after a moment. "If you and I both ended up here, but she was still trapped in hell…I don't know what I would have done."

"I know," Sam said darkly. "You and I would have clawed our way out of heaven and fought our way down there to get her back."

"Damn right," Dean muttered.

"But, thankfully, that didn't happen." Sam hesitated a moment. "Dean…would you rather be with her right now? Because we can head back anytime, you know."

"No, Sammy, I…I mean, obviously I want to be with her, but right now…I'm happy just being with my pain-in-the-ass little brother," he admitted.

"Jerk," Sam smirked.

"Bitch," Dean grinned.

The topic then drifted to the massive crowd waiting for them back at the Roadhouse. "Did you get to talk to anyone yet?" Dean asked his younger brother. "Bobby, or Mom and Dad…"

"Not yet," Sam shrugged. "I didn't get here long before you. And I saw everybody waiting inside but I just kind of decided to wait outside for you. I mean, they'll still be there when we get back."

"Yeah," Dean said, secretly pleased that his brother would rather be with him than all the other loved ones they had lost over the years. Obviously, he, too, wanted to be with them, but as always, Sammy took priority in his mind.

"So, uh…you haven't really told me yet how you ended up here," Sam eventually pointed out. "I mean, obviously you know how I got here…" Both brothers tried and failed not to remember how, not long ago, Sam had lay dying in Dean's arms as the world began to end.

"Right." Dean swallowed. "Well, uh…after you died and gave me the Colt, I…I got pissed." An understatement. He had been murderous, stabbing and punching the king of the Knights of Hell who had taken his brother and several other loved ones from him. "I attacked him, and while we were fighting, he got me good. I was dying, but then thankfully he started to monologue, so I had plenty of time to take him down with me."

He could still vividly remember firing the Colt into Beelzebub's skull, watching the Knight of Hell die, and dragging his failing body over to Sam's to die next to his little brother. But he tried to push away those dark thoughts and focus on happier thoughts. After all, he was in heaven.

"Huh. Well, I figured something like that must have happened," Sam said after a moment. "I'm just glad you could stop him first." Sam hesitated, and then said carefully, "I'm kind of surprised Cas didn't try to bring us back, though."

"Honestly? I'm glad," Dean admitted. "I mean, obviously I didn't want you or Julie to die, but after everything we've gone through, after all that we've done…a chance to live happily ever after with everyone we've ever lost back with us? That sounds pretty damn great, Sammy."

"Yeah, it really does," his little brother smiled.

They settled back into a comfortable silence for a while, just driving, but now Dean's thoughts were turned back to the Roadhouse where his mother and father and Bobby and all of his friends and the woman he loved all waited…

Sam took one look at Dean's wistful expression and knew it was time. "Dean?" he asked softly, and his brother turned his eyes to look at him.

"Yeah?"

Sam smiled genuinely at him and said warmly, "Let's go home."

* * *

Julie looked up, unable to hide her eagerness, as the door to the Roadhouse swung wide open. And sure enough, there they were, the tall and handsome brothers she loved so dearly. She didn't hesitate to spring to her feet, a wide and earnest grin spreading across her face as she made eye contact with Sam.

She rushed to his side and threw her arms around him, drinking in his familiar, solid warmth. He had the familiar, clean yet manly smell of Sam, and he felt as real as he had on earth. She was still getting used to how surprisingly real heaven felt. Sometimes, she could hardly even tell it from earth.

Eventually, Julie released her tight hold on Sam and pulled away to grin up at him. He brushed a large hand through her hair and grinned down at her, his hazel eyes warm and wonderfully familiar. "I missed you too," he chuckled.

She probably would have said something sassy in response, but then she saw Dean standing there and smiling at the two of them. And oh, how wonderful it was to see that man smile. She hadn't seen him smiling like that in months. Actually, she wasn't sure she had _ever_ seen him looking this happy.

In heaven, Dean stood taller, like a massive weight had been lifted off his shoulders. His perfect lips seemed to be stretched in a perpetual, genuine grin filled with the kind of real and complete happiness he had never possessed on earth. And those gorgeous green eyes were so full of joy that she couldn't help beaming at him.

Not even caring that they were in a bar full of people watching, including their own parents, Dean brushed past Sam to grab Julie's hips and drag her close to him, kissing her long and hard and fierce. Julie let his hands pull her closer, let his lips own her, just drinking in the wonderful feeling of having his body underneath her fingers. The horrible memory of their last embrace as she waited for hellhounds to come and kill her still haunted her, but every second she spent kissing this wonderfully warm, solid, real Dean, that nightmare grew fainter and fainter.

Eventually, Sam cleared his throat uncomfortably and someone who sounded suspiciously like Charlie hollered, "Get a room!" Dean and Julie pulled apart, laughing as they did so, and tuned to face the bar full of deceased loved ones around them.

Charlie was up on her feet, looking bright-eyed and eager as she bounced over to them. "Okay, everyone!" she hollered. "You can all get in line to greet out newest members of the Heaven's Hunters Club now. But I get first dibs!"

Sam, Dean, and Julie all laughed as she reached them. She hugged Sam first, stretching up to hug the massive hunter tightly and greet him warmly. Then she threw her arms around Julie and squeezed her tightly.

"It's so good to see you, Julie," Charlie gushed. "I haven't seen you since purgatory."

"Oh, yeah, fun times," Julie smirked.

"You look good, girl!" Charlie grinned. Then a wicked gleam came into her eyes. "Like _really_ good. Heaven suits you well, Julie. I mean, _damn-_ "

"Alright, yeah, yeah, moving on," Dean grumbled, trying to hide his smirk, as Julie laughed.

"Oh, relax, grumpy," Charlie sighed dramatically. "You look hot, too."

"Shut up and hug me, Charlie," Dean growled in mock-annoyance, and she gladly hugged him.

"It's so good to see you, Dean," she whispered in his ear, her voice sounding tight with emotion.

"You too," he whispered. And considering the last time he saw her, she was burning on a pyre, it really was.

He would have liked to keep on catching up with his old friend, but they would have plenty of time later. A line had already formed of eager, loud hunters excited to greet their old friends.

The next person in line was Pamela Barnes, their old psychic friend who had her old eyes intact. She seemed very grateful to have her sight back as she drank in tall and gorgeous Sam and flirted with him. Julie was almost certain that she saw the woman grab Sam's ass as she embraced him, and she giggled at his shocked, amused expression.

"So you're the girl who finally locked down this looker, huh? Too bad." Pamela asked as she introduced herself to Julie. She winked at Dean, and he chuckled and shook his head.

"Ignore Pamela, Jules," Dean assured his girlfriend. "She's not going to try anything."

"I can't promise that," the woman laughed, lightly slapping Dean's ass as well as she sauntered way. He stared wide-eyed at Julie, afraid to see her looking angry, but was glad to see that she was just roaring with laughter.

Old friends began to flood towards the three of them. Sam, Dean, and Julie found themselves greeting Matthew Bones warmly, and then the boys were greeted by their old friends Pastor Jim and Caleb. Before long, they had moved along, and they were embracing young Kevin Tran and smiling warmly at his beaming mother.

When Jody Mills reached them, she held each of her friends for a long time. Dean was overjoyed to see her back with her late family, and there was joy in her eyes he hadn't seen there in years.

Next up were Ash, Ellen, and Jo. Ash threw his arms around each of them enthusiastically, even Julie, and told them they were welcome here anytime. Ellen hugged both of the brothers and greeted them warmly. Jo gladly hugged Sam, and there was a tense moment where Dean was uncertain she would hug him, but she threw her arms around him as well.

But before long, they were moving along. And next up was a horde of blonde hunters, several of whom looked very similar to the beautiful woman at Dean's side.

"Uncle Jasper!" Julie cried warmly, squeezing him tightly. Jasper chuckled warmly and stroked her hair for a few seconds until she released him. He gave her a misty-eyed smile and told her how glad he was to see her up here instead of downstairs.

He moved past her to greet Sam and Dean, giving them both brief but warm hugs and congratulating them on saving the world. Meanwhile, Julie hugged her cousin, Taylor, and then her ex-boyfriend and Taylor's current boyfriend, James Hawthorne. The three of them chatted for a few seconds, but then Julie's eyes landed on the two young, blue-eyed, blonde people watching her with teary smiles and she forgot about everyone else.

Dean watched as Julie rushed over to a small, thin young woman in her early twenties with light blonde hair and the same sweet, open face as her daughter. He couldn't help but smile as he watched Julie's mother embrace her daughter. It was a bit odd to see a twenty-nine-year-old Julie hugging her mother who couldn't be more than twenty-two or twenty-three. Apparently in heaven, people were preserved at the age they died, so Julie was always going to appear older than her own mother.

And then Julie was embracing her late father, Thomas. Dean had heard many stories of this young man, and he was pretty sure he would like the guy a lot. Thomas looked quite a bit like his older brother, Jasper, but with less stubble and less harsh features. Thomas Carters had died at thirty-six, so he looked barely older than his daughter. None of that seemed to matter to the two of them, though. The father and daughter who had once been so close embraced tightly, Thomas pressing his cheek against the top of Julie's head and closing his eyes to hold back his tears.

Eventually, Julie pulled away from Thomas and sniffled. Then she suddenly smiled broadly and gasped, "Dad! Mom! Oh, you guys have to meet Sam and Dean!"

She grabbed her father's arm and towed him over to the waiting brothers with her mother on her heels. "Guys, this is Sam and Dean Winchester," Julie explained, nodding at each brother respectively.

"It's nice to meet you, Mr. Carters," Sam said respectfully, shaking Thomas's hand.

Thomas laughed, a warm, throaty sound that made Julie grin from ear to ear. "Call me Thomas, Sam," he said warmly, and Sam nodded, smiling back at his best friend's father.

While Sam introduced himself to Julie's mother, Katrina, Thomas turned to Dean. "So," he said slowly. "You're the young man who has been sleeping with my daughter for the last two years," he said darkly, and Dean quailed.

"I, uh…" Dean stammered, looking around for help. But then Thomas was roaring with laughter, and Julie was joining him. Thomas clapped Dean on the shoulder and said, "Relax, Dean. My daughter is an adult now, and so are you. Besides, Jasper tells me you really love her, and you're a good guy, which is more than enough for me. Although, I do have to admit, I really didn't appreciate watching you stick your tongue down my baby girl's throat a couple minutes ago."

"Dad, leave him alone," Julie whined as Dean paled again, sounding almost like a teenage girl introducing her boyfriend to her dad for the first time. Thomas smiled and tousled her hair, and then he stuck out a hand to shake Dean's.

"I'm just messing with you," he assured Dean. "Really, it's nice to meet you, Dean. You know, I used to know your dad back when I was alive."

"Really?" Dean and Julie both asked, surprised.

"Sure," Thomas shrugged. "Jasper and I went on a couple hunts with him through the years. He sure talked about you boys a lot. Couldn't quit going on about brilliant little Sammy and his kickass hunter of a son, Dean."

"Sounds about right," Sam said with a smirk as he joined the group. "I'm Sam Winchester. And you must be Julie's father. It's so great to finally meet you."

While Sam and Thomas got introduced and began to chat, Dean introduced himself to Julie's mother. Katrina was a soft-spoken, sweet, slightly timid young woman who seemed to like Dean quite a bit. Dean and Sam were both really enjoying themselves as they began to get to know Julie's family, but suddenly the Carters family was moving out of the way. Dean didn't understand, and then he saw the three people waiting and understood.

Rufus greeted both boys gruffly and then headed back to the bar for more beer. But it wasn't really Rufus that the boys were focused on. It was the man who had been their father as much as John Winchester, their gruff, tough, yet lovable surrogate father Bobby Singer.

"Bobby?" Sam asked softly after a moment of the two brothers just staring at him.

"C'mere, boy," Bobby said gruffly, grabbing Sam's back and dragging him into a tight hug. The two of them clapped each other on the back and held on tightly for several seconds while Dean and Julie watched fondly.

"It's so good to see you, Bobby," Sam said as he and Bobby finally pulled apart.

"You too, Sam," he replied warmly. And then his eyes landed on Dean.

"Bobby," Dean choked out before embracing the older man. Their hug was much longer and a lot more emotional. As Dean forced back a strange wetness in his eyes, he choked out, "You have no idea how good it is to see you, Bobby."

Bobby just laughed weakly in response and clapped Dean on the back. When they pulled apart, both men nodded warmly at each other.

"I don't suppose you boys were ever planning on introducing her to me?" Bobby asked gruffly after a moment of silence.

Dean grinned as he gently took Julie's hand and pulled her up to stand next to him. "Bobby, this is my girlfriend, Julie Carters," he said proudly. "Jules, this is-"

"The famous Bobby Singer," Julie finished warmly, shaking his hand and giving him an infectious smile. "I've heard a lot about you. And I actually know you. Well, sort of." Dean, Sam, and Bobby all raised their eyebrows in surprise. "You were one of the hunters who first taught my dad and uncle how to really hunt. They were in their early twenties at the time, and I was like two or three when you met them. Thomas and Jasper Carters?"

Bobby grinned. "No kidding," he chuckled. "I remember those boys, and their cute little girls. Wait, so you're sweet little baby Juliet?"

Julie laughed and looked down, turning a little pink with embarrassment. Bobby took her in and shook his head. "Well, you're certainly not a baby anymore," he smirked.

"Alright, enough of that, Bobby," Dean snapped, although he was very obviously trying hard not to smile.

Bobby smirked and squeezed Dean's shoulder. "I can't wait to catch up with you boys, and to get a chance to know you, Julie," he said warmly. She beamed at him, but Sam and Dean both frowned.

"Wait, where are you going?" Sam called as Bobby and his late wife Karen began to walk away.

"I figured I'd let you two get a chance to catch up with your parents first," Bobby called back, smiling warmly at the two of them.

Sam and Dean exchanged a look, and then turned back to the line that had formed to greet them. It was all but gone, only two people left waiting. Two very familiar people…

"Mom," Dean choked out at the same time Sam breathed, "Dad."

Their parents stepped forward, both of their eyes shiny with tears, and embraced their sons. Dean held his mother for a very long time, burying his face in her hair while Sam and his father shared a brief embrace. When Mary finally released her hold on Dean, she paused to stroke the side of his face and beam up at him for a moment before embracing her youngest son. Dean and John both hesitated for a moment before moving to hug each other, a strange sort of tension in the air between them that had never been there before, or at least not as tangible. But then the moment passed and they embraced for a long moment before letting go.

"Mom, Dad…it's so good to see you guys," Dean finally managed to say after the four of them stood there for a second, just taking each other in.

"You too, boys," John said in a gruff yet warm voice. "We've…we've missed you."

"We missed you, too," Sam said softly, his throat tight.

"I'm so sorry," Mary said suddenly in a tight, emotional whisper, and her sons both frowned. "I can't believe I brought hunting into your lives, I can't believe I did this to my sons…"

"Mom, it's not your fault," Dean said firmly. "You did everything you could to protect us."

"Besides, we turned out alright," Sam said encouragingly, and she gave him a watery smile.

"You did," she admitted. "Oh, I'm so proud of you boys. All I wanted was for you to be good men, and you two grew up to be heroes."

Sam smiled back at his mother, while Dean looked at the ground, his jaw flexing as he worked furiously to swallow his tears. Julie noticed Dean struggling and stepped up next to him. She took his hand and smiled gently up at him when he met her eyes.

"Mom, Dad," Dean said after a moment, lifting his head. "I have someone I would like you to meet."

John and Mary studied Julie, their expressions unreadable. "This, uh…this is my girlfriend, Julie Carters," Dean said uncertainly, suddenly feeling like an awkward teenager introducing his first girlfriend to his parents. It was a completely ridiculous feeling, considering he currently looked a few years older than his own mother and not too far in age from his father, who had both been preserved the same age they were when they died.

"Julie, it is wonderful to meet you," Mary said warmly, extending her hand to shake Julie's. "I am so glad Dean has found someone who makes him happy."

"It's so good to meet you, too," Julie replied earnestly. "Really. I think the world of your sons."

"Me too," Mary smiled.

She stepped back to let John greet Dean's girlfriend, but all he did was nod at her and say, rather stiffly, "Nice to meet you." His thoughts were clearly elsewhere, so Julie tried not to take his gruffness too personally.

"Well, I think I'll let you four catch up," Julie said after an awkward pause.

"What? Where are you going to go?" Dean asked, panicking for half a second.

Julie laughed and turned to face him. "Relax, Dean. I'm just going to go catch up with my own parents."

"Oh," he said softly, feeling silly now. He just wasn't quite ready to watch Julie walk away so soon after losing her.

"I'll be right here in the Roadhouse if you need me," Julie promised him, before stretching up to kiss him, not caring that his parents stood a couple feet away. Dean made the kiss stretch on a few seconds longer than socially acceptable before letting her go and brushing a loose strand of hair out of her eyes.

"I love you," he said softly, not really meaning for Sam and Mary and John to hear, but sure that they would.

"Love you too," she murmured, stroking the side of his face. "I'll see you soon, okay?"

Dean nodded and then watched wistfully as the woman he loved walked away. Part of him wanted to make her stay, to find some private little corner of heaven and throw her onto a bed and see if heaven sex could really measure up to what he had been imagining. Another part of him just wanted to sit alone with her and talk for hours and feel her hand in his and the warmth and comfort of her at his side. Part of him just wanted to sit here for the rest of eternity, just staring in her beautiful blue eyes.

But he had all of eternity to be with the love of his life. Right now…he wanted to be with his family.

* * *

 **Author's Note:** I'm back! I'm very excited to be starting up this chapter of the Winchesters lives. Finally, after enduring hell and saving the world a few times, the boys finally get to come home to heaven. But don't worry. It's not all going to be bubbles and sunshine in heaven. It is Supernatural after all. We've got quite a bit of drama right around the corner. But first, I would like to extend an invitation to all of you readers. I have a general outline of where I want this story to go, and I have all the important plot points mapped out, but I still have a lot of flexibility on what happens in between. I invite you all to submit any requests you have for scenes or characters that you want to see in this story. Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed! Thanks for reading!


	2. Chapter Two: The Mother He Never Knew

**Chapter Two: The Mother He Never Knew**

It was odd. Sam had no idea why he was so nervous. All he was doing was walking into a coffee shop with his mother to catch up with her. Well, maybe that was it. The fact that he was walking into a coffee shop to catch up with a woman who was essentially a stranger to him.

Everything Sam knew about Mary he had learned either from vague, gruff, painful conversations with his father, or from Dean. His older brother had clearly adored the woman, and he told Sam glowing stories about their kind, smart, beautiful mother, about how she cut the crusts off of his sandwiches for him and sang him to sleep and stroked his hair and cooed over her baby Sammy and loved her sons more than anything.

If Dean were here, Sam would probably be completely at ease. He could watch Dean and Mary talk and catch up and bask in the glow of his beautiful, loving mother, getting to know her by watching her talk with Dean. But John and Mary had wanted to talk to their sons individually, and so Dean had gone off alone with John to catch up.

Actually, Sam had to admit, even though he barely knew his mother, he would rather be here with her. Years of resenting his father's treatment of his sons had not quite faded away yet, and Sam was sure that reunion would be quite tense. Dean probably got the worse end of the deal.

The coffee shop Mary had taken them to was a cute little place, all warm brown colors and comfy seating. Very few customers were inside to enjoy the warmth and delicious, cinnamon and coffee smell, and they all seemed a little fuzzy around the edges, easily fading into the background. Sam was vaguely aware that this was just one of Mary's memories and not an actual place, but it still felt very real and warm and pleasant.

Mary ordered coffee with lots of cream and sugar and a scone, and Sam ordered black coffee and, after a moment's hesitation, a muffin. He didn't typically eat sweets very often, opting for salads and protein shakes or whatever food Julie or Dean had whipped up in the bunker's kitchen. But he didn't exactly have to worry about his health or weight in heaven, so why the hell not?

Mother and son sat down across from each other in a comfy booth, and then there was a moment's silence. Sam took a sip of his coffee, trying desperately to think of something to say. If Julie was here, she would already be chatting up a storm with Mary, and if Dean was here, at least he would have some fond memories to reminisce over with her. But it was just him, alone with a woman he barely knew but still somehow loved.

Finally, Mary broke the silence. "Sam, I…I hope you don't mind us coming here," she said uncertainly. "This used to be one of my favorite places in the world when I was younger, and I just feel really comfortable here."

"I can see why," he said with a smile. "It's nice here."

"I'm glad you like it," she sighed in relief. "I wasn't sure you would because, as hard as this is for me to admit…I don't even know my own son."

Sam looked down, unsure what to say. She wasn't wrong, after all. Mary cleared her throat and quickly moved on. "I've been talking to a lot of your friends since Ash found John and I and brought us here. They've got nothing but good things to say about you, of course." She beamed proudly at him. "Apparently, you grew up to be a good man and a hero."

Again, Sam looked down and blushed a little, unsure what to say. Finally, he cleared his throat and asked, "So who all have you met?"

"I talked a lot with your friend, Charlie. She's very chatty." Sam laughed in agreement. "But she's sweet. And she seems to love you and Dean. They all do." Mary stops to think for a moment. "I also like your friend, Jody. Oh, and that man, Bobby Singer. I didn't speak too much with him, but he really loves you and your brother. He says you two are heroes."

"Only because he raised us that way," Sam smirked. "And Dad, too, of course," he added quickly. Although, honestly, sometimes it had felt like Bobby was raising them a lot more than John.

Mary studied Sam for a long moment, an odd look in her eyes. "Sammy…" she started after a long moment, and then caught herself. "Sorry. Sam."

"Mom, you can call me Sammy," he laughed lightly, and it felt so wonderful to call this woman his mother. It felt right.

She laughed too and smiled genuinely at him. "Well then, Sammy…I never meant to drag you and your brother into this. I never wanted any child of mine to ever have to hunt a day in their life, and I'm so sorry to have brought this all on you."

Sam surprised himself by reaching out and putting his large hand over hers on the table. "It's okay, Mom," he said. "There was honestly nothing you could have done to keep me and Dean out of this life." She frowned in confusion, but he didn't really feel like explaining how her sons were the true vessels of Michael and Lucifer, and that they were instrumental in starting the apocalypse so there was no way that the angels and demons would have left them alone all their lives. "Besides, we saved a lot of good people by becoming hunters."

"I know you did," Mary said, studying him with something close to awe. "Your friends tell me that my sons— _my sons_ —have saved the world. Repeatedly. I honestly couldn't be more proud of you boys."

Sam smiled at her, so glad to hear those words from his mother. But she wasn't done yet. "But I've also heard a lot about all the horrible things you've had to go through. No mother wants to hear that her sons have died and gone to hell and sold their souls and drank demon blood and been trapped in hell with the devil himself."

Sam looked everywhere from his mother. She had just been so proud of him, and he didn't want her to know all of his terrible mistakes. The demon blood, Ruby, freeing Lucifer, failing Dean, not trying to save Dean when he went to Purgatory, betraying his brother's trust time and time again, falling in love with Dean's girlfriend…he wanted his mother to love him and not hate him for all of his terrible mistakes.

But then Mary put her hand over his and said in a soft, emotional voice, "Sam, I am so proud of you. No one should ever have to go through that, and yet you did, and you are still a good man."

Sam's throat felt oddly tight. "Mom-" he started, but then he realized he had nothing to say.

Finally, he managed to get out, "Thank you." She gave him a tear-filled smiled and squeezed his hand. Then both of them gave shaky laughs and sipped at their coffee and ate their snacks until their emotions were back under control. The food and coffee were both delicious and the perfect temperature, filling Sam with a wonderful, warm feeling. Heaven food was literally heavenly.

After that, Mary asked about simpler, happier things. She wanted to know what sort of movies and TV shows her youngest son liked. She wanted to know what he did in his spare time, what kind of music he liked, if he was an animal lover, what kind of books he read. Sam was surprised by how much he and his mother had in common. They both liked crime dramas, they both had shown an interest in law because they were brilliant and wanted to help others, they both enjoyed more modern music, while John and Dean were stuck in the sixties and seventies when it came to their music. Mary loved dogs as well, although she actually preferred cats. That led to a brief, entertaining argument between mother and son about what family pet they should get in heaven. Her taste in literature was the same as his and Julie's, and he told her so.

And then, of course, Mary wanted to know all about this mysterious Julie Carters, the woman who had stolen Dean's heart. She had heard from the Harvelles and Rufus and Kevin how her eldest son was with women, so she had been a little surprised to see him with one woman who he so clearly seemed to love.

Sam was finding Mary very easy to talk to, and so he was completely honest about Julie. He gushed about the beautiful, brilliant, funny, tough, kind woman who was his best friend and Dean's girlfriend, although the word girlfriend didn't quite cover it. He rambled on and on about how he and Julie would read together, about how she would kick both their butts in a fight by preying on their hesitations to hit her, about how clever and witty she was, and about how skilled a hunter she was. He told funny stories of them all hanging out at the bunker, her saving him and Dean from some hungry, horny vampires, and stories of her bravely taking on the very Knight of Hell who had once killed and tortured her in hell.

Mary listened to him intently, smiling and laughing in all the right places. After letting him talk for several minutes about this wonderful girl, she finally just asked, "So when did _you_ fall in love with her?"

Sam froze, his face going pale. Mary just laughed, though. "Oh, come on, Sam. You're pretty transparent. You talk about her the same way people talk about old lovers. I'm just guessing that you and Julie didn't actually do anything about it judging by the fact that she's still with Dean."

He swallowed. "Yeah, yeah, I…I was in love with her. And Dean found out, and we fought about it, and it was rough. But she loved Dean, so she stayed with him, and we worked it out. Well, at least until she died." Mary's eyes widened. "That Knight of Hell, Beelzebub, that I was telling you about? He killed her and dragged her down to hell for ten years. After seeing how bad that messed Dean up, I realized he loved her a lot more than I did, so I was able to get over her. Now we're just best friends."

"Well, I'm you were able to work through it," Mary said earnestly. "Although I'm sorry that poor girl had to die and go to hell for it to happen."

"Me too," Sam sighed. "Believe me, I would have done anything to prevent it."

After that, they again talked about simpler things. Mary told Sam more about what she had been like as a child, about the grandparents he had never gotten to know. Sam decided not to tell her about how her father had returned from the dead and Sam's soulless self had worked with Samuel for a few months, at least until the man handed his own grandsons over to be killed by a demon. And he gladly omitted the fact that he had sort of murdered his own grandfather, thinking that was a subject better left unaddressed.

Mary told happy stories of her and a young, happy John Winchester in the early days of their marriage. Sam told her more about his and Dean's childhood, omitting John's neglectfulness and alcoholism as much as possible. And then the two of them just talked about Dean. Finally, a subject they could both talk happily about for hours. And they did. Sam and Mary talked on and on about Dean and their love for him for hours, laughing and chatting happily and bonding over their love of him until they finally felt like a true mother and son.

And for the first time in months, Sam felt really, truly happy. Heaven was pretty damn great, he decided. Dying might be one of the best things that ever happened to him.

* * *

Dean found himself really wishing Sam or Julie were here. He and his father had been sitting in silence in a small canoe in a peaceful lake for several long minutes, and he could not think of a single thing to say. If Sam were here, at least he would have someone to talk to. And if Julie were here, she could hold his hand and lean into his side and at least try to make small talk with John. And if John ignored her, she could brush her lips across Dean's neck and he could rest his chin on top of her head and they could sit here in silence together.

Instead, he just stared at his father's back as John hooked bait onto his fishing pole and prepared to toss it out into the ocean.

Fishing had always been such a simple, peaceful, soothing act that Dean had always thought he would enjoy it. Sometimes, when life was too much or he was struggling with anger issues, he would just close his eyes and imagine he was in the middle of an endless, peaceful lake, waiting patiently for a tug on his line. But his father had never taken him fishing or anything, and he had never really bothered to learn himself. Too busy saving people from monsters.

Finally, John spoke. "You know, my dad used to take me out here when I was young," he said in his low, gruff rumble of a voice. "We would just sit here in silence, and I would watch him fish. Even if he didn't catch anything, I still thought it was amazing. And then, when I was eight or nine, he taught me how to fish myself. I loved it. We would just sit out here in silence and wait."

Dean didn't know what to say. Finally, he said, "It's peaceful out here. I can see why you would like it."

"I always meant to teach you one day," John admitted. "But when you turned eight-"

"You were off hunting a djinn, and I was busy watching over Sammy," Dean finished. "Yeah, I remember."

"I always felt bad about missing your birthdays," his father sighed. "But there were people to save and monsters to kill-"

"I get it, Dad," Dean said quickly. "Really. It doesn't bother me. Besides, Sammy was there to keep me company. We played games and he made me a card. It was fun."

"You still remember that?" John asked, a little surprised.

"Of course. I loved when Sam was that age. A chubby little kid like half my height, and he was still probably smarter than me. And he was adorable back then. Now he's just some freaking Sasquatch. Still has way too much hair now, though. But I kind of miss the days when I could just sit on him to shut him up."

John chuckled lightly. "He was a good kid, Sammy," he sighed thoughtfully. And then he added, "And you were too, Dean."

Dean blinked. That was something he had never heard as a child. Good? He was good? He wasn't good. He was a failure, a mistake, the kid who could never shoot accurately enough or fight well enough or run fast enough, the kid who was never a good enough hunter, never a good enough son. All he was good for was protecting Sammy, and sometimes, he couldn't even do that. He was just a huge waste of space, a terrible excuse for a son.

He didn't want these thoughts right now. He just wanted to catch up with his father who he had lost so long ago. He just wanted to be happy.

"I really did mean to teach you how to fish, though," John said after a brief silence. "I always kind of regretted never making time for it."

Never making time for _you_. Those were the words he left unsaid, but they were both thinking it. Dean quickly pushed those thoughts away and said, "But you taught me how to shoot instead. It's not like you never taught me anything."

"Yeah, I taught my skinny little kid how to shoot a gun that was almost bigger than he was," John said darkly. "Don't thank me for that, Dean. Don't."

Dean looked down at his shoes. John wasn't wrong. It was pretty freaking terrible of him to teach his son how to shoot and stab and fight and kill before he was even ten. He put far too much pressure on his son, demanding more out of him than anyone ever should, expecting him to fight and die for his little brother when he was still a child. That was some pretty bad parenting. But Dean had forgiven him for it.

Or at least he had thought he had.

"You did a damn good job taking care of your brother though," John said eventually.

Dean frowned. "Dad, what are you talking about? The kid died on my watch. Repeatedly."

"But you got him back every time," John said with a small, sad sort of smile at Dean. "You did the right thing."

"The right thing?" Dean repeated slowly. "The _right thing_?! Dad, I sold my soul! I went to hell for _forty years_! I broke after thirty years of torture, and I started the goddamn apocalypse! You're not supposed to tell me good job, to tell me I did the right thing, because I didn't!"

John frowned, a spark of anger coming into his eyes. "I sold my soul to save you, Dean. Are you saying I did the wrong thing?"

"Yeah, actually, I am!" Dean snapped. "You shouldn't have done that. I never asked you to do that. I never wanted you to do that."

"So what?" John snapped. "I let you die? Dean, you are my son! I had to do whatever it takes to protect you."

"No, you didn't," Dean said with an anger he didn't know he had been harboring all these years. He slowly rose to his feet in the canoe as his anger took over. "You should have let me die. You and Sammy would have been more than enough to take down Yellow-Eyes, and then all of the rest of that crap, the apocalypse and Cas falling and the Leviathans…it wouldn't have happened."

John stood up as well so he could be eye-level with his son to glare at him. "Dean, as your father I had a responsibility to protect you, to do whatever it takes to keep you alive," John said coldly. "I am not going to apologize for what I did."

"Then where was that protection the entire rest of my life? When you trained me to hunt and kill and put me in dangerous situations ever since I turned eight? _Eight_ , Dad! I was a freaking kid!"

"That didn't seem to bother you then," John frowned.

"Because I was a _kid_!" Dean shouted. "I didn't know any better. I just wanted to make you proud. But I never could. I was never good enough for you, Dad. Never."

"Dean, that's not fair-" John started.

"No, you know what's not fair? Going and dying and going to hell for me when I didn't deserve it and leaving me with the guilt of knowing my father was in hell in my place," Dean snapped, his anger only growing with every word. Something had happened when he snapped earlier, and thirty-three years of resentment and guilt and grief were slowly pouring out of him, and he couldn't stop it. "You don't know what it's like to live knowing you should be dead, knowing that someone you love is suffering because of you. And you shouldn't have done that to me."

"You think it was easy for _me_ , son?" John shouted, his anger getting the better of him. "That monster Alistair had me for a hundred years before you finally found a way to get me out. One hundred years of that torture, Dean, all for you. And I never broke, not once. And then you, my _hero_ of a son, you break in thirty."

One look at Dean's face told John he had gone too far. The pain and guilt and hurt and anger in Dean's eyes broke his heart. But there was too much anger in John right now for him to apologize.

"You're right," Dean said slowly after a long, tense silence. "I was weak. I was never as good or strong as you, Dad. But I wouldn't have been in hell in the first place if you had actually been a halfway decent parent instead of turning your sons into weapons."

"I did the best I could, Dean!" John snapped. "Everything I did, I did to protect you. You and your brother had to be able to fight to protect yourself."

John had a point, but Dean was too angry to admit it. He just turned away from his father and tried to take deep breaths, looking at the tranquil water and wondering how it could be so calm when he was so furious.

"What happened to you?" John asked softly, honestly curious. "You never said anything like this. Ever. You always just seemed happy to do whatever I asked."

And he had been. What had changed, besides lots of years to look back on the past and grow bitter and angry?

Then the answer hit him, and it was so glaringly obvious he almost wanted to laugh.

Julie.

She has always openly resented his father. Every story he told her about their crappy childhood, about John's anger issues and alcoholism and neglectfulness, every subtle hint that John had never done anything but degrade and demean and look down on his eldest son as inferior made her furious. Dean's stories about John had always been pretty forgiving of the man, but Sam had been brutally honest, and Julie had grown to really resent John for what he did to his sons. She obviously respected that Dean and Sam both loved their father, but she was not afraid to tell Dean her opinion on his father.

And somewhere in their long conversations about the many issues with John's parenting and his treatment of Dean, he must have stopped seeing John as such a perfect idol and more as the man he was: flawed, damaged, and not nearly the parent he probably should have been.

"Julie," Dean said after a long moment, and John frowned.

"Who? Oh, wait, that girl you're with."

Dean's eyes narrowed a little as he turned back towards his father. "She's not just 'that girl,' Dad. I love her."

"So I hear," John muttered. "But what does she have to do with me?"

"Well, she isn't exactly your biggest fan," Dean smirked bitterly. "Sam and I told her enough about you to make her decide she didn't exactly like your parenting skills. And I have to admit, lately I've kind of started to agree with her."

John's eyes narrowed in anger. "That girl has no idea what she's talking about," he snapped. "She doesn't even know me."

"You're right," Dean shrugged. "But she made some good points about the serious flaws in the way you parented us."

"Of course you would think that," John smirked bitterly. "I'm sure you're pretty likely to agree with anything she says as long as she keeps sleeping with you."

"That's not what this is about, Dad," Dean snapped. "This is about us, not her."

"Really?" John snapped coldly. "Because you and I used to get along just fine before you let that bitch poison your mind."

John almost toppled over as suddenly Dean was on top of him, gripping the collar of his shirt in his fist and looking utterly terrifying. John had never been afraid of his quiet, obedient, submissive son before. But he had never seen this side of Dean before.

"What did you just call her?" Dean growled in a low voice filled with fury.

John knew he had gone too far yet again. He just did not know where to stop, did he?

"That was too far," he admitted quietly. "You're right. Now let go of me, Dean, before I make you."

"Damn right, that was too far!" Dean practically roared. "And I would like to see you try."

And finally, John lost it.

Dean hardly realized what was happening as John ripped himself free of Dean's grip. John didn't realize what he was doing either, as anger overtook him and he found himself shoving his son out of the canoe.

Dean landed in the lake with a large splash, upsetting the perfect, calm water. John watched in surprise and horror as Dean resurfaced, spluttering angrily. His clothes and hair were soaked, and once he recovered from his shock, there was a serious kind of anger in his eyes.

John gulped nervously.

"Dean," he said as his son swam back over to the canoe. "Dean, I'm sorry." His eldest son ignored him and tried to haul himself back up into the boat, but it was a struggle. "Dean, here. Let me help you."

Dean ignored him and tried futilely to climb in by himself, but eventually he gave in and let John help haul him back into the boat. Dean quickly pulled away from his father and turned away from him in anger.

"Dean, I'm sorry," John tried again. "Really. I don't know what came over me. I didn't mean to say any of that, about hell and the girl and….all of it. I'm sorry."

His son remained silent.

John forced down his pride and half-begged, "Dean, please…can you forgive me?"

Dean was silent for a long moment, and then he sighed, the tension going out of his body. "Yes," he sighed. "I can. But right now, I just need some space. Let's just go back."

"Of course," John said quickly, and he sat down to begin rowing the boat back to shore.

Dean sat down as well, feeling cold and weary and miserable. His clothes were drying impossibly fast, one of the perks of heaven he supposed, but that wasn't making him feel much better at all.

Maybe heaven wasn't going to be so great after all.


	3. Chapter Three: A Night at Home

**Chapter Three: A Night at Home**

Dean sighed wearily as he opened the door to the Roadhouse and stepped inside.

He was still not quite recovered from that fight with his father. His clothes had dried, and his body felt light and healthy, in perfect condition, but all the perfect circumstances in the world couldn't help his mood. When Dean got this moody and miserable, there was only one thing to do.

Drink.

Dean was grateful that the Roadhouse was basically empty. He wasn't sure he could handle the crowds of people who had been here earlier. Ash was standing behind the bar, humming the tune of a Led Zeppelin song under his breath as he sorted through bottles of alcohol. If Dean was in a better mood, he might have started humming along. Instead he called, "Ash, can I have a shot of the strongest, darkest stuff you've got?"

Ash smirked and raised his eyebrows a little, but he nodded. "You know it won't get you drunk, right?" he asked as he started searching for a glass.

Dean sighed. "I do now." He ran a hand over his face as he reached the bar, and then said, "Oh, well. Just pour it anyway. Old habits die hard, I guess."

His old friend smirked and continued his search. Then a familiar voice called, "Now, what's got you in such a bad mood? We are in heaven, after all."

Dean turned and smiled at the woman sitting a few seats down the bar, feeling an immense weight lift off of his chest at the sight of her. There she was, Julie Carters, looking even more beautiful in heaven, if that was possible. Her loose, shoulder-length, beautiful curls glowed a buttery shade of yellow in the warm lighting of the Roadhouse, and her pale, smooth skin practically seemed to glow. The blue, V-neck shirt she was wearing made her gorgeous blue eyes seem to pop, and it clung to her generous curves in all the right ways. She slipped off of her bar stool and walked over to him, all long, slender, graceful limbs and fluid movements. Dean watched her with a fond sort of awe, aware that he could honestly just stare at her for the rest of eternity and be content.

Julie reached him and stretched up to kiss him for a brief moment. It wasn't enough, and Dean caught her waist to hold her to him, kissing her harder and fiercer than he had quite meant to. She melted into the kiss, running her hands up his arms to cup his face as the kiss deepened.

Ash cleared his throat and slid the shot glass over to Dean. "I'm going to have to ask that you two tone down the public displays of affection in my roadhouse," he announced gravely, and Dean pulled away from Julie enough to smirk at Ash.

"Whatever, Ash," he chuckled. He picked up the shot and downed it, enjoying the fierce burn of the alcohol sliding down his throat almost as much as he enjoyed knowing he wouldn't have to deal with a hangover tomorrow.

Julie settled onto a bar stool and Dean planted himself on the one next to her, scooting his over so he never had to be more than a couple inches from her. They settled into a comfortable position with their legs pressed together and their sides almost always touching. Dean rested a hand on Julie's thigh, and she absently stroked her fingers through his hair as she asked, "So, how did things go with your parents?"

"I didn't really get to see Mom," he admitted, a bit of the tension and anger going out of him as her gentle touch soothed him.

"Really?" she asked, automatically shifting a little to face him better.

"She went with Sam and I went with Dad," he continued.

"Oh?" Julie tried and failed to hide her distaste for John. "And how did that go?"

Dean looked down for a moment, and then ordered another shot.

"That good, huh?" Julie murmured, putting her hand on Dean's leg in a comforting motion. Then she turned to Ash and hollered, "Make that two shots!"

"Coming right up," Ash shouted back.

The two of them took a few shots, knowing the alcohol wouldn't really affect them. But Dean was right. Old habits die hard. Eventually, though, the burn of the alcohol got old, and Dean began to long for the chance to really talk to Julie about private things without Ash hovering nearby, joking around and always offering more booze.

He didn't have to say a word. Julie knew what he wanted, and without needing any kind of signal, she suddenly stood up and pulled Dean up with her. "Alright, Ash. I think we're gonna head out. Thanks for keeping us company."

"Anytime," he called after them as Dean followed Julie out of the Roadhouse.

Dean trailed after Julie, letting her pull him by the hand over to the waiting Impala. "Where are we going?" he asked, bewildered.

"You'll see," she replied, a playful light in her eyes as she grinned at him. She stepped close to him, so close her body was almost on his, but not quite. "But first…you have to give me the keys."

"What?" Dean blanched.

"Ash has been explaining heaven to me, the way he set this all up," she explained. "Basically, he figured out how to hook up all these hunters' heavens so they can visit each other and stuff, and the roadhouse is like the center of it all, like a train station but with alcohol. And by leaving the roadhouse, you can get pretty much anywhere you want in your own memories, as long as you know what you're looking for."

"That's pretty cool," Dean had to admit.

"Right?" Julie grinned. "Ash and I practiced a little bit, and I figured out how to get to this one place."

"Where?" he asked, getting drawn in by the excitement in her eyes.

"You'll see," she teased. "Once you give me the keys."

"I don't see why I can't drive," Dean shot back.

"Because it's in _my_ heaven, moron," she smirked, unconsciously leaning closer to him.

Dean suddenly hooked his fingers through the belt loops of her jeans and dragged her as close as possible. He leaned down as if to kiss her, but his lips stopped barely an inch from hers. They almost brushed her lips as he spoke. "How do you know we wouldn't have the same heaven? I mean, Ash once told me soulmates share heavens."

"That's cute," Julie smirked in response. "You think if you're smooth, you're going to convince me to let you drive."

"Did it work?" Dean asked hopefully.

Julie's hand suddenly slipped into his jacket, and before Dean quite knew what was happening she was practically dancing away from him and towards the car, the keys jangling in her hand. "Not a chance!" she called airily, laughing as she slid into the driver's seat. Dean chuckled, shaking his head, even as he climbed into the passenger seat.

Dean trusted Julie more than just about anyone, and of course he had let her drive his baby before. But still, even on earth, it had been a rare occasion. And now, with the Impala in such flawless condition, he almost didn't want to let anybody else drive her.

But one look at Julie's face as she revved the engine and a huge grin spread across her face let him know this was going to be worth it.

Julie rolled the windows down and then whipped out of the parking lot and down the dark highway. Whatever memory they were travelling to must be at night, because the sky was inky black, the only light coming from a huge, silver moon pouring moonlight onto the open road before them. Julie coaxed the Impala to higher and higher speeds, laughing as strong winds whipped into the car and completely messed up her hair. Dean found himself laughing too, her giggling becoming infectious.

He had no idea how long Julie drove, but he didn't mind the drive. It was exhilarating to be moving this fast, and even more entertaining to see the excitement and thrill in Julie's eyes. But all too soon she was pulling off the road and parking in the driveway of a very familiar house.

"Oh. Wow," Dean said softly, staring up at the familiar, rather small yet cute, two-story house. "You found it."

"Of course," Julie said, turning off the car and pressing the keys back into his hand. "It wasn't hard. Some of my happiest memories were here."

Dean curled his fingers around hers as she pressed the key into his hand, and he leaned over to kiss her briefly. "Mine too," he murmured into her lips, and she pulled away enough to beam at him.

"Come on," she said as she got out of the car and headed towards the house.

Dean watched her walk towards the house they had both lived in for several months while they tried to live a semi-normal life. It brought back strong déjà vu, being here with her, but somehow it was different. Julie was certainly different than the carefree girl he had lived with in this house. That girl hadn't died and gone to hell. That girl hadn't lost her uncle and cousin and basically all of her remaining loved ones. That girl hadn't seen the man she loved become a demon. That girl hadn't sold her soul to the very demon who had killed her once before.

But this Julie before him wasn't the same damaged woman who had lay weak and damned and terrified in his arms before getting up to sacrifice herself to the hellhounds coming for her. She had the old spark of life in her he hadn't seen in her for a while, but there was a new sort of wisdom in her eyes that only came from serious hardship.

He was sure he was different than the man who had lived here as well. But he honestly didn't want to dwell on himself right now, because that would only lead to him resenting himself, which would then lead to him resenting his father for being the reason he resented himself, and he was very tired of resenting people right now.

He just wanted to be happy with her right now.

Dean gladly left the car and followed Julie back into their old home. Everything was exactly the same. The living room with their large, plush couch where they had often had lazy morning sex, the bookshelf full of Julie's books, the liquor cabinet full of Dean's liquor, the stairs Julie had once taken Sam down on…everything was perfectly preserved in Julie's memory. The real house had been burned when demons had followed Sam to them, but this place was exactly as it had been, a perfect little sanctuary.

Julie walked over to the liquor cabinet while Dean settled down on the comfortable brown couch, sighing in relief as a warm sort of comfort filled him. He kicked off his boots and worked his jacket off before Julie returned with a bottle of fine wine and two wine glasses.

Dean never was much of a wine drinker, but he honestly didn't mind right now. Besides, everything was better in heaven, and wine surely would be too. He gladly took a wine glass from Julie and let her fill it with red wine. He smiled at her as she kicked off her shoes as well and curled her legs up onto the couch, turning so she could face him better. She clinked her glass against his and they both took long sips of the sweet wine.

After a moment of comfortable silence, Julie shifted to totally face Dean and said, "Alright. We're finally alone. Now, time to talk."

He sighed and looked down. "I…I honestly don't know what happened. I mean, Dad and I never fought. It was always Sam, and I was just in the middle, trying to remind them that they loved each other. But I don't know I just…I snapped. I was supposed to be catching up with my dad, and instead I just fought with him."

"What happened?" Julie prompted gently, and he told her everything. How the argument had started about John's parental skills or lack thereof and had ended up being about John dying for Dean and Dean breaking in hell and Julie's influence on Dean. Dean wisely omitted the fact that John had called her a bitch, already seeing the anger in her eyes. He ended by describing how John had pushed him into the lake and then helped him back in the boat and apologized until they parted ways.

"Dean, I know he's your father and that you love him, but sometimes I really want to punch John Winchester in the face," Julie said flatly after a moment of silence.

"You barely even know him," Dean pointed out weakly.

"Don't have to. Still want to punch him."

"It's not all his fault," Dean protested weakly. "I mean, I kind of started it, and if I'm being honest with myself, I was looking to pick a fight-"

"Dean, for the love of God, tell me you are not blaming yourself for this!" Julie snapped, the first time she had snapped at him since he had arrived in heaven. "Everything you said to him was true. That whole fight was on John, not you."

"But I started it-"

"And he was the one who made you like this, so determined to blame yourself for everything!" Julie cried angrily. For a moment, they both just stared at each other, a thousand unsaid words passing between them, and then Julie sighed, the fight going out of her. "Ugh. I'm sorry. This is our first night in heaven and it's supposed to be happy and I'm supposed to be helping you-"

"You are," Dean assured her, brushing his free hand along her cheek. Julie looked up at him hopefully, all big blue eyes and full, pouting lips. "Really. Trust me, talking to you about it makes it so much easier to let it go."

"I'm glad," she sighed, reaching out and squeezing his leg. "Really. And I wish that you and John hadn't had to fight on your first day here, but…it may have been a good thing. You both got out every bad thing you never said to each other, and now you can hopefully just heal, right? It's got to be better than just bottling everything up inside."

"Yeah, I guess you're right," Dean grumbled into his wine glass as he took a long drink.

"I always am," Julie smirked, and he grinned at her.

"Alright. Enough about me and my depressing life. How was your day?" Dean asked, eager to move on to a happier subject.

Julie lit up. "Oh, Dean, it was amazing. I got to be with Jasper and Taylor again, and that was wonderful, but being with my dad again…it was honestly perfect. He hasn't changed at all, just the same funny, happy, good guy he was before, and even though I've changed a lot, he still loves me the same. It was just so good to catch up with him…" She trailed off wistfully, remembering a fond moment, and Dean beamed at her.

"I'm so glad, honey," he told her honestly. "And how was getting to know your mom?"

"Um…" Julie bit her lip nervously. "It was a little awkward at first. I mean, I don't know her. Like at all. But it turns out we have a lot in common. I inherited my taste in music from her, so we have that, but she also loves to sing and read, so we talked about that. And we both love my dad so much it just…it honestly couldn't have gone any better. Oh! And I made sure to talk you up to them. A lot. Like, there's literally no way you could live up to their expectations now."

"Awesome," Dean chuckled wryly, and Julie leaned in to kiss his for a brief, sweet second.

"They're going to love you. Really," she said earnestly, and it was clear in her eyes that she really believed what she was saying.

"My mom will love you, too," Dean said. "My dad…" He hesitated.

Julie shrugged indifferently. "I'm not exactly his biggest fan either, so it's okay."

Dean sighed wearily. "Wow. One day in heaven and there's already plenty of drama. I thought everything was supposed to be bubbles and sunshine in heaven."

"Dean, when has anything in your life ever been 'bubbles and sunshine'?" Julie laughed.

"I don't know, it was pretty good when you first came into it," Dean pointed out. "Those days when it was just you and me here…those were pretty damn great days."

"Yeah, but there was no Sam and Cas in your life," Julie pointed out, and then winced. "Sorry, I didn't mean to-"

"Don't worry about it," Dean chuckled. "I'm honestly okay with all that crap now because it's over."

"Really?" she asked skeptically. "You're just okay with everything that happened?"

He knew what she was really referring to now. How, not even forty-eight hours ago, she had sacrificed herself to hellhounds and been dragged down to hell just so he would go stop the apocalypse. A small part of her must be afraid he hadn't yet completely forgiven her for that.

Dean thought about it for a moment and then said, "Yeah, actually. I mean, sure, in the last forty-eight hours I watched my brother and the woman I love die. But I got you both back now, and things are a hell of a lot better than I expected them to be when I died."

"Well, I'm glad you're okay now," Julie said carefully, setting down her now-empty wine glass. "But…I'm not. I still owe you an apology for what I did. That was horrible and cruel and if there had been any other way-"

"Jules, it's alright," he assured her gently. "Really. I know why you did it, and it all turned out okay, didn't it? Beelzebub never got his hands on you, and now you're in heaven. No harm, no foul, right?"

Her eyes searched his for a sign that he was holding something back. "How can you be so okay with this? I left you, the one thing I promised I would never do."

"Well, it wasn't easy. I was actually pretty freaking glad to die when that son of a bitch gutted me. But I'm just trying to focus on the fact that I've got you back now. So as long as you never do anything like that ever again…"

"I don't know how I could go die on you again considering we're both dead," Julie smirked, and Dean cracked a smile. "But I swear, I'm not ever going to leave you again. I mean it."

"Good," he said firmly, setting down his empty glass as well. Dean angled his body so he was completely facing Julie and said, "Because I don't plan on letting you out of my sight ever again."

"That's probably a little excessive," Julie laughed, unconsciously leaning a little closer to Dean.

"I don't think so," he shrugged. "I've got all the rest of eternity ahead of me, right? And I can't think of a better way to spend it than to be with you."

Julie leaned in and kissed him, and Dean kissed her back passionately, tasting the sweet wine on her lips. They kissed for a long time, lips moving in sync, until Julie couldn't take it and she pulled away from Dean just long enough to work his shirt off of him. Her fingers fumbled on the buttons in that adorably clumsy way they always did, and Dean found himself chuckling into her mouth as he unbuttoned his shirt himself. The second Dean's chest was exposed, Julie's lips left his and trailed down his neck and down his chest to his stomach, while he curled his fingers in his hair.

Finally, he got fed up with her teasing and got up off the couch, taking her with him. Within seconds, the rest of their clothes were hitting the ground, and then Dean easily scooped Julie up and carried her off to their old bedroom where their large, warm, welcoming bed waited.

And damn, if heaven sex wasn't every bit as good as he had been expecting!

They didn't really need sleep in heaven, so when the two of them finally collapsed onto the bed, exhausted and satisfied, they just curled up in each other's arms, getting so entangled Dean wasn't sure where he ended and Julie began. Neither one spoke after that, but they just lay in each other's arms, content to hear each other's breathing and feel their heart beating. As Dean stroked Julie's hair and took in the beautiful woman in his arms, it hit him all over again how damn lucky he was to have found this girl.

After several hours of just lying together, feeling warm and happy and peaceful, Dean and Julie eventually got up out of bed. They went through the motions of eating breakfast and getting ready for the day, and even though they weren't necessary, it still felt good to do them. And Dean would never get tired of seeing Julie sitting at the table, eating a breakfast he had cooked for her in nothing but his shirt.

And when they finally left their house and headed back towards the roadhouse, Dean felt truly ready to face whatever challenges the day held as long as he had her by his side.

* * *

 **Author's Note:** A little break from all the drama while Dean and Julie just get a nice night off. Up next, the Winchester family is going to meet up again, so we'll see how that ends... Don't forget to send in any requests for specific scenes or character pairings you would like to see!


	4. Chapter Four: Trouble in Paradise

**Author's Note:**

Before I start this chapter, I should warn you: not everyone will probably agree with my characterization of some of these characters. I have done my best to stay true to the characters of Supernatural while also being original and developing my own story. Anyway, all this to say that even if you don't necessarily agree with my characterization of certain characters, I hope you can still enjoy this chapter. And I promise that even the most infuriating characters will get redemption arcs...

* * *

 **Chapter Four: Trouble in Paradise**

"But he shoved you in the lake?!" Sam cried, caught between laughter and anger.

"It's not a big deal, Sammy," Dean shrugged indifferently, looking down at the wood table between them. "It was kind of funny, actually."

"I bet it was," Julie chuckled, trying to lighten the mood a bit. "The stuff he said before it? Not so much. But seeing you floundering around in the lake, looking like a drowned rat… that would have been hysterical."

Sam chuckled as well, casting a grin in her direction. Dean scoffed in protest. "I don't look like a drowned rat. I have _never_ looked like a drowned rat!"

"Oh, Julie, I've got this great memory I have to show you sometime!" Sam said quickly, ignoring his protesting older brother. "Dean was like eleven, and freakishly skinny, and he took me swimming at the motel we were staying at. If he ever looked like a drowned rat, it was definitely then."

"Oh, yes, you definitely have to show me that!" Julie laughed, leaning across the table in the middle of their booth towards her best friend. "You have to show me every embarrassing memory of a pre-pubescent Dean you've got." Both friends shook with laughter while Dean grumbled in his seat.

"Just try to avoid those awkward teen years," she continued. "I think if I see Dean covered with acne and struggling with voice cracks and awkward boners, I might just have to leave him."

"I hate you both," Dean said moodily, causing them both to laugh again.

"Don't worry, though, I'm perfectly happy with a middle-aged version of you," Julie soothed him with a mischievous smile.

"Middle-aged?!" Dean cried indignantly, and Sam and Julie both roared with laughter again.

Despite the fact that they were heckling him, Dean was glad that Sam and Julie were in such good moods. It was distracting him from worrying about seeing his father again in just a few minutes. John and Mary had planned to meet their sons again in the Roadhouse any minute now.

"You know I love you," Julie amended, snaking a slender arm around Dean's waist. He gave in and put his arm around her shoulder, leaning down to kiss the top of her head.

"Yeah, yeah," he grumbled even as his lips brushed across her hair. "And I…tolerate you."

She laughed and shoved his chest as she pulled away, but she didn't seem hurt. There was a sort of happiness in her eyes he hadn't seen in far too long.

"Who needs refills?" Sam asked, waving his empty beer bottle around for emphasis.

"I'll take one," Dean shrugged.

"You know, now that we can't get drunk, there's really no point in drinking," Julie pointed out.

"And?" both brothers asked in unison.

She smirked and rolled her eyes. "What the hell. I'll take one, too."

Sam got up and ordered three more beers from Ash, who was laughing behind the bar with Ellen Harvelle. Dean smiled fondly as he watched Sam laugh and joke with Ellen for a minute or so. Julie's small hand found his and he curled his long, calloused fingers around hers, holding hands under the table like a couple of awkward teenagers. Except they didn't feel the need to make awkward conversation. They just sat in comfortable silence, content to just be together, and watched as Sam approached with their beers.

He had just settled down and handed out the beers when the door to the Roadhouse. Julie noted that somewhere in the back of her head but ignored it, laughing as Sam asked self-consciously if he really needed a haircut as bad as Ellen said he did.

But her laughter died as she felt eyes on the three of them, and she looked up to see John and Mary Winchester standing a couple feet away, just staring at their sons as they sat and laughed and drank with her.

Sam and Dean's laughter died in their throats when they saw the shadow of their father fall across their table, and Julie didn't miss Dean's jaw set into a hard line. Sam's lips pursed, and there was a brief, tense moment of silence between all of them.

Then finally Sam said as warmly as he could muster, "Mom, Dad." He stood and Julie followed suit, pulling Dean up with her by their interlocked hands.

She didn't miss the way John's eyes zeroed in on her hold on his son. His jaw set in the same hard line Dean's was locked in.

"Hi, Sam," Mary said warmly, stepping forward to hug her youngest son. Then she turned towards Dean with shiny eyes. "Dean."

"Mom," he choked out, releasing Julie to step forward and hug his mom. Sam gravitated towards Julie, eying John almost protectively as he shifted closer to her. He hadn't missed Dean's brief mention of the harsh things John had said about Julie and her effect on Dean.

"Hey, Dad," Sam said carefully, trying not to seem too unhappy with his father. But he couldn't put the thought of John insulting Julie and shoving Dean into a lake out of his mind.

"Sam," John said as warmly as he could, but his eyes kept drifting to the girl standing at Sam's side like she belonged there. And then Dean stepped back from his mother and settled at her other side, the two of them flanking her like it was perfectly natural for them.

Who was this girl, and how had she come to have such a tight hold on both of his sons?

"We were thinking we could all spend some time together today, boys," Mary told her sons. "And Julie, dear, you're welcome to stay with us."

"That's the plan," Julie said brightly, but John didn't miss the firmness in her voice. She wasn't going to leave. After what had happened when he and Dean had been alone together, Mary had decided that they should all catch up together. John had agreed, but he hadn't envisioned their family catching up while this girl sat by and watched. And yet she acted like it was her right, like she belonged here, and, worst of all, like she didn't trust John alone with his sons without her there to watch.

For some reason, it pissed him off endlessly.

Sam and Dean and this girl—Julie, that was her name—all settled in on one side of the large booth, and John and Mary sat opposite them. John tried to swallow his irritation at seeing Julie sitting between his two sons, laughing at something Sam had muttered to her and resting her hand on Dean's leg like it was her right. Like she owned him.

John had no idea why everything this pretty, skinny little blonde did angered him so much. But something about her confident, almost smug air rubbed him the wrong way. She was far too comfortable around his sons, almost possessive, and he didn't like it. He certainly didn't like the way she had changed his eldest son. And he could only imagine how she had changed his already naturally more rebellious son.

"It's so nice to finally get a chance to get to know you," Julie said sincerely to Mary. Those words were probably meant for both parents, but her eyes remained only on Mary. "Sam and Dean have talked about you both so much, but I never thought I'd get the chance to actually meet you."

"Well, it's wonderful to get to know you, too, dear," Mary said sweetly. "Really. And I have to thank you. For taking care of my sons the way you have."

"Really, it's no big deal," Julie muttered, blushing a little and looking down.

"No, it is," Mary insisted. "Sam told me about what you did for Dean. How you sold your soul for him. I couldn't ask that of anyone, and it means so much to me that you…" Her voice trailed off as Mary got a little choked up.

"Yeah, well, I loved that idiot way too much to let him stay a demon like that," Julie said, trying her best to lighten the mood.

"'That idiot'?" Dean asked, mock-offended, and Julie shoved him lightly. Her hand found his and squeezed it tightly, reassuring herself that he really was here, whole and human and hers. Dean squeezed her hand back and nuzzled his face into her hair for a moment, brushing a kiss across her forehead to comfort her.

John's eyes narrowed at that sweet, comforting little moment. That gesture was pure and gentle and loving and so out of character for his womanizing, gruff, no-strings-attached son. What had this girl done to change him this much?

Sam was talking Julie up to his parents animatedly, going on and on about how brilliant and kind and good a hunter she was. Julie rolled her eyes and blushed, stepping on his toes and trying to get him to stop bragging on her like a proud father or something. John watched as she and Sam teased each other, smirking and laughing at little inside jokes, nudging and elbowing and wiggling their eyebrows at each other almost flirtatiously.

Was she after his youngest son, too? That would explain why both boys were so close with her, hanging on her every word, standing protectively by her side, brushing up against her at every possible opportunity.

Was she cheating on Dean with Sam? If she was, he swore he would throttle this little slut.

Before he knew what he was doing, John was finally speaking for the first time as he blurted out, "So, you two seem close…" His eyes shifted back and forth between Sam and Julie almost suggestively.

"We are," Julie spoke up, as Sam's eyes widened at the insinuation. "Sam's my best friend. Your son's a good man, John." Her eyes flashed a little before she added, "And before you ask, there's nothing going on. We got over that a year ago."

John's eyes widened a little, surprised that she had called him out, but also surprised that she had admitted that something had gone on between them. Dean blinked in surprise as well, but Sam just asked, "Has it really been a year?"

"Well, I left in the middle of that mess, and then I was dead for a month, and then there were those two or three months where the Mark was taking over Dean…"

"Right," Dean chimed in. "And then I died and I was a demon for four or five months."

"And then you made your deal, which meant six more months, and then we ended up here," Sam finished. "Huh. It's been well over a year. Wow."

"I know, we're old, right?" Julie smirked, and both brothers smiled at that.

"So…what happened then?" John asked darkly. "Did you cheat on Dean?" he half-barked.

Julie's expression darkened. "Dad!" Dean snapped.

"No, I didn't," she said in a guarded voice. "I fell in love with Sam, sure, but I got over it. Because I love your son, and I was not going to hurt him or betray his trust. Is that good enough for you, John?"

His eyes darkened with something close to rage. "It wasn't even her fault, Dad," Sam said protectively. "It was all on me. My mistake. And it's all good now."

John said nothing, instead sinking into a surly silence for the next several minutes while the rest of them eventually moved past the tense subject and chatted about lighter things.

Ash came by and handed out drinks. Everyone chatted happily with him and laughed except for John, who glowered at Julie in silence. He answered a few questions that Mary or Sam asked him directly, but he otherwise disengaged from the conversation, except for when he would glare at Julie whenever she touched either Sam or Dean.

Mary noticed, and so after a couple hours of catching up with her sons, she excused herself and John and left the bar. Sam, Dean, and Julie sat in awkward silence for a long moment, and then Julie abruptly stood up, pushed past Dean, and said, "I'll be right back."

John was in the middle of a brief but intense scolding from Mary about his behavior when the door to the Roadhouse opened, and there was that pretty, controlling girl who had changed his sons so much. She crossed her arms and called, "Mary, I hate to interrupt, but can I have a moment alone with John?"

Mary looked between the two of them, swallowed, and then nodded. "I'll see you at the house, John," she told her husband before disappearing down the road.

"What do you want?" John asked gruffly.

"You don't like me," Julie said flatly. "I get it. That's fine. But I think I at least deserve an explanation why."

John stared her down for a moment and then snorted drily. "Look, Julie. You're Dean's girlfriend. Fine. I get that. I can't change that. That doesn't mean we have to be best friends."

He turned away and started to walk after his wife, but Julie's hard voice cut him off. "You're right, John. We don't have to be best friends. Hell, we don't have to like each other. But we do have to at least get along. For Sam and Dean's sake."

John turned to face Julie, feeling anger rise in him at her borderline disrespectful tone. "You know I really don't need you telling me how to behave when it comes to _my_ sons."

"No offense or anything, John, but you kind of do," she shot back, taking a step towards him. "Because, whether you believe it or not, I only want what's best for your sons."

"Oh, and you really think you know what that is better than I do?" he smirked darkly, advancing on her. "You think you, some girl who's known them for a couple of years knows them better than their own father?"

Julie was a smart girl. She was mature, wise, and usually had a calm head. She was the one calming Dean down, soothing him after fights and talking him down during arguments. But with John Winchester, she was different. She wasn't sure what it was. She had met plenty of hard-headed, hot-tempered men in her life, but none of them had set her off like this.

She must have seen Dean's face darken at a traumatic memory of his childhood one too many times. She must have heard a story of abuse and neglect from Sam, or seen the brothers grow cold and distant at the mention of their father, or seen Dean wake up from a nightmare of his father angry and abusive one time too many to forget and forgive.

So instead of staying calm and rational, Julie snapped, "Yeah, actually, I do. Because Sam and Dean are not the same kids you left when you died all those years ago. Not that you ever bothered to get to know them then either."

John's eyes flashed. "And how would you know? You were some high school kid goofing around and going to basketball games while we were off doing our job and saving the world. You have no idea what my sons were like then."

"You're right, I didn't know them then," she replied icily. "But I know them now. And I know how much it would hurt them to have to choose between spending time with me or their father instead of all of us being together."

John laughed bitterly. "You really think that's a choice? I am their _father_ , Ms. Carters. And whatever kind of hold you have on them, no matter how much my son enjoys sleeping with you, you are never going to be able to compete with that. So go ahead. Make them choose. You won't win."

"I don't _want_ to make them choose, John!" Julie cried angrily. "All I want is for those two men who have suffered so much to finally get a chance to be happy. But I can't do that if you won't work with me!"

John shook his head at her. Her words sounded great and all, but he had learned long ago not to trust anyone. And this girl, this stranger, had changed his sons, warped their minds, turned them even further against him. His sons who he loved, his sons who had been his life for the last twenty years of his life. All he had. He would not lose them to this girl.

"That sounds good and all," he said coldly. "But the fact is you turned my eldest son against me, and for all I know, you probably made Sam hate me even more. So I don't know how the hell you expect me to pretend I like you just so you can keep pretending you belong with us."

Julie stepped back and blinked, looking hurt for the first time. But before John could even feel guilty, her hurt faded away to anger. "I'm not the one pretending to belong, John. And I'm not the one who is going to lose them if you make them choose."

John laughed scornfully. "Really? You? You think you matter more to them than their own father?! You're just some girl who keeps Dean's bed warm, and Sam's for all I know." Julie's mouth opened in shock and anger, but John didn't want to hear it. "And I am not going to lose my sons to some arrogant, self-righteous slut."

And without another word, he turned and stormed down the path away from the Roadhouse until he faded out of sight.


	5. Chapter Five: Big Trouble

**Chapter Five: Big Trouble**

The moment Julie walked into the Roadhouse, Sam knew something was wrong.

She looked fine. Too fine. Her clothes and hair were smoothed down, and her face was carefully arranged into a tight mask of perfect calm. She walked casually over to the table where Sam and Dean waited looking collected and calm. Way too calm.

"Everything okay?" Dean asked carefully.

"Yep. Just had a little chat with John. But things are all good now." Sam didn't believe her for a second.

Dean gave her a skeptical look but nodded after a moment. "If you say so," he shrugged before finishing off his beer.

Sam caught Julie's eyes for just a moment, and he raised his eyebrows to let her know he was onto her. For a moment, her guard slipped down, and he could see a storm of emotions in her eyes, anger and hurt and worry clear in her expression.

"What's wrong?" he mouthed desperately, leaning towards her a little.

In response, Julie pursed her lips tightly and shook her head slightly. Then Dean looked up from his beer and belched loudly. Instantly, Julie was composed and calm once more as she rolled her eyes at him. "You're gross," she announced.

Dean grinned cheekily at her and winked. "And you love me anyway." She forced a tight smile back at him. "Well, I'm out of beer. Again. Anybody else need refills?"

Julie shook her head, but Sam said quickly, "I could use another." Dean nodded and hopped up to go order more beer from Ellen. Sam prayed that Dean would take a long time chatting with his old friend and leaned in towards Julie.

"What the hell happened?" he growled quietly.

"Sam-" Julie started to protest, but he wasn't having it.

"You want to hide how you feel from Dean? Fine. But that's not working on me, Julie. Now what the hell did he do to make you like this?"

"It's nothing, really…" she protested, looking down at the table.

"Julie, come on. I know you." She looked up at those words and swallowed. "What did he do to you?"

"He didn't hurt me," she assured him quickly. "He just said some stuff…I wasn't expecting it. I didn't realize how much he hates me."

"What did he say?" Sam growled.

"You can't tell Dean," Julie insisted. "They're already on thin ice."

"I reserve the right to make that decision," he said flatly, and she sighed in defeat.

"He said that…I don't know you guys, not really. That I don't belong here with you guys. That I'm just some girl Dean's sleeping with, nothing special. He even suggested you and I were sleeping together."

Sam's hands were fists, but he could tell there was something more. "What else?" he asked darkly.

"He called me…" Julie laughed bitterly. "An arrogant, self-righteous slut, if I remember correctly."

Sam barely resisted the urge to stand up sharply and storm out of here to find his father and beat the shit out of him. But he didn't even get the chance to reply before a familiar voice snarled, "He called you _what_?!"

Julie's eyes went so huge Sam thought they might pop out of her head. She sprang to her feet as Dean slammed two beers down onto the table so hard they sloshed out of the glasses. "Dean, no, it wasn't like that…he just meant…"

"What?" Dean growled, his eyes and voice dark and borderline murderous. "He just meant what? Really, Julie, I want to hear you try to twist that into something good. Because you and I know both know he meant that, every word of it."

"Dean," Julie pleaded, grabbing onto his arm. "This is why I didn't want to tell you. I knew you'd be angry-"

"Damn right, I'm angry!" Dean half-roared. Ash and Ellen both looked up, frightened and concerned. "It was bad enough when he called you a bitch to me. But to insult you to your _face-_ "

"He called her _what_?!" Sam cried, getting to his feet as well. Suddenly Julie had two furious bombs to try to defuse.

"Guys, calm down!" she pleaded. "It doesn't matter what he called me-"

"The hell it doesn't!" Sam snapped. "He doesn't get to just stay stuff like that to you without expecting us to do something!"

"He's out of control," Dean growled, pulling his arm free of Julie's grip and storming towards the door.

"Dean, stop it!" Julie half-shouted, throwing herself between Dean and the door and grabbing his shoulders. "You're not going to do anything about this, okay?"

"Are you kidding me?" he cried. "I _have_ to do something about this! He can't keep doing this; it's not okay."

"You're right, it's not," she said as calmly as she could. "But you don't need to get involved. This problem is between me and John, and I don't want you two fighting with your father because of me."

"This problem is between me and him, too," Dean said firmly. "Because you are a huge part of my life—hell, you _are_ my life—and if he's got a problem with that, then he can take it to me, not you!"

Julie wanted to beam that the man she loved had just said she was his life. But she had bigger problems. Like keeping him from storming off to kill his father. "Dean, honey, that's very sweet, but you forget I'm the one who started this," she pointed out, still clinging to his shoulders in an effort to hold him back. "I'm the one who went after him. So this is on me, not him."

But Dean wasn't listening. "I don't freaking care," he spat. "We're dealing with this, and we're dealing with it now."

"Dean, if you would just take a minute to calm down-"

"Nope," he said flatly, and then he pulled her hands off of him easily and plowed towards the door.

"Hey! What the hell is going on?" Ash barked, coming towards them. Ellen followed behind him, concern in her eyes.

"Nothing," Dean growled, irritated to find that Julie had managed to plant herself between him and the door yet again while Ash distracted him. "I've just got something I need to deal with."

"Look, Dean, I don't know what's going on right now, but I think your girlfriend is right," Ellen said sharply. "You need to take a minute to calm down."

"I'm not going to calm down!" he snapped. "My dad has gone way too far, and I need to deal with this."

"I can deal with this!" Julie protested. "I don't need you to fight my battles for me, Dean!"

"We know you can take care of yourself, Julie," Sam said firmly. "But you don't understand. Dad? He's not going to listen to you. The only way we're going to solve this issue is if one of us deals with him. It's the only way he'll actually understand how far from okay this is."

Dammit. She hated it when Sam was sensible and reasonable and right.

"Sam has got a point," Ellen said wisely. "Whatever this issue is, it needs to be dealt with. But Julie has a point too, Dean. You need to take a minute to get your anger under control before you go talk to your father."

"And what if I don't want to take a minute?" Dean snarled. "What if I just leave? What are you going to do? Chain me up?"

His eyes landed sharply on Julie, and she flinched. She knew he wasn't angry at her, not really, but for her. Still, his anger was so total right now that it was bleeding into anger at everyone around him. And she knew she deserved it after chaining him to a pipe and forcing him to sit there, helpless, while she was murdered just a few feet away.

Sam put his hand protectively on Julie's shoulder. "Hey," he reprimanded Dean sharply. "Remember who your issue is really with."

The tiniest bit of remorse filled Dean's eyes, and the angry tension in his body leaked out of him slightly. Ash saw his opportunity and took it. "Look, Dean. You go barging out there right now, you've got no idea how to find your dad. Now I will take you to him so you can deal with this. But only if you sit here for five minutes and calm down a little. Or at least get your anger under control."

Dean wasn't an idiot. He heard the wisdom in what Ash was saying. "Please?" Julie begged him softly, and he was lost.

"Fine," he growled, stomping over to the bar to pout. The others followed him. "Can I get you a drink, Dean?" Ellen asked him carefully.

"Whiskey-"

"Water is fine," Julie said firmly, sitting on the bar stool next to him.

"I can't get drunk, you know," Dean told her irritably.

"Sorry. Old habits die hard." She didn't sound very sorry, and a few moments later, Ellen handed him a glass of water. Dean sighed, but he took a couple sips to appease Julie.

"You know I didn't mean-" he started after a long moment.

"I know," she whispered, taking his free hand and squeezing it. "I'm not upset, Dean. At least, not at you. And I get why you're mad, you and Sam both. But please, _please_ …don't do something you're going to regret. I don't want to see you ruin your relationship with your father over me."

Dean nodded at her, unable to promise he wouldn't do anything to his father once he saw the man. Julie leaned towards him slightly, hesitation in her expression, like she wasn't sure he would allow her to lean into him.

In response, he put his arm around her and held her tightly for a long moment. "You know he was wrong, right?" he asked softly. "About everything he said."

She nodded mutely, her throat strangely tight.

"You do belong with us," Sam assured her, sitting on her other side. "You matter so much to us, Julie."

"I know," she said as bravely as she could manage, smiling at both of them. "I just…I wanted so badly for him to like me. For us to all be one big happy family. I know it was stupid, but…"

"It wasn't stupid," Sam said firmly. "And it's not your fault that it's not like that right now."

"It's his," Dean said darkly. Julie swallowed and then buried her face in his neck, focusing on the thrum of his pulse in her ear. It was encouragingly steady, so maybe he was calming down. He kept his arm around her, his breaths even and calm as he sipped his water, and she began to hope that he would no longer feel like hunting down his father after his five minutes to calm down.

But exactly five minutes after he sat down, Dean kissed Julie on the top of her head and stood up sharply. "Okay. Time to go, Ash."

"Dean…" Julie pleaded weakly, knowing it was pointless. Even as she reached for his arm to hold him here, Ash sighed and got out from behind the bar counter to lead Dean to John.

Dean caught her hand and squeezed it tightly. "It's going to be fine, Jules," he promised her. "I'm calmer now. I'll be able to deal with this without punching him in the face. Hopefully."

She opened her mouth to protest, but she knew it was hopeless. "I'll see you soon," Dean said to both her and Sam. Sam gave him a short nod, and Julie bit her lip to keep from protesting again.

Then Dean turned and followed Ash out the door to go find his father. They had a lot to talk about…

* * *

"You said _what_?" Mary cried from her seat on their couch.

"You don't understand, Mary," John snapped. "She was asking for it, coming after me and trying to tell me what to do, after everything else she's already done…"

Mary's eyes were surprisingly hard as she stared up at him. "Everything else she's already done? Like saving Dean's life by loving him when he was struggling with depression and the Mark of Cain? Like protecting both of our sons for the better part of two years? Like selling her soul to save Dean from being a demon any longer? You're right, John, what a horrible girl!"

"She turned my sons against me, Mary!" John cried. "She made Dean hate me, and I can only imagine what she made Sam think of me."

"Even if that were true, John, you can't go calling our son's girlfriend a slut! Neither of your sons hate you, but after that, who knows?" Mary seemed caught between anger at him and worry for him, and he did not understand.

"Are you seriously angry with me?" John asked incredulously. "Mary, for all we know that little whore is sleeping with both of our sons and turning them against me."

"For the love of God, John, stop calling that girl a whore!" Mary cried, rising off of the couch in her anger. "Julie is a sweet, lovely girl who loves both of our sons more than I could have ever hoped for either of them. She would never want to hurt them, so she wouldn't do any of that!"

"You don't even know this girl, Mary!" he cried, exasperated and angry. "You can't possibly know how she really feels."

"No, but I can tell how much both of our sons love her," his wife cried, distraught. "And if you keep insulting that girl like you've been doing, you're going to make them choose between us."

"So what?" he scoffed.

"So what?!" Mary cried angrily. "John, I just got my sons back. I'm not ready to lose them as soon as I get them back!"

"Lose them?" he cried scornfully. "Mary, I'm their _father_. There's no way they'd choose some girl over their own family."

"Yes, you're their father who has been dead for over ten years," she snapped. "They've had plenty of time to learn to live without you. But this girl? She is their _life_ right now. They love her, John. And as much as they love us, we've been gone a long time. Julie is more family to them than we are now. And if you make them choose between her and us, we will lose our sons. We will _lose_ them, John!"

Mary seemed near tears, and that shocked John. She was honestly frightened she was about to lose the sons she had just gotten back. That wasn't possible, right? There was no way they could care more about that girl than their own parents.

Right?

"Dad!" a furious voice thundered behind John, and he tensed up. Mary's eyes widened and her face paled.

John turned slowly to face his eldest son. "Dean…" John started, but he had no idea what to say next.

"I know you didn't tell my girlfriend that she doesn't know me and Sam," Dean said in a slow, deceptively calm voice. "I know you didn't tell her she doesn't belong with us. I know you didn't accuse her of sleeping with my brother."

"Dean, I-" John tried weakly.

Dean took a threatening step towards him and snarled, "I _know_ you didn't call the woman I love a slut."

"Dean, he didn't mean it," Mary said quickly, trying to soothe her son.

"Mom," Dean said slowly. "I love you. But right now, I need you to go so I can speak with my father alone."

Mary wanted to stay, but she knew she couldn't help by being here. So she swallowed and left the house to go find a safe, happy memory to hide in as she tried to pretend she wasn't about to lose both her sons.

Dean and John both watched her go in silence. Then John turned to face his son and swallowed nervously when he saw the cold, unyielding fury in Dean's eyes.

"We need to talk," Dean growled, and John gulped.

He was in big trouble.


	6. Chapter Six: Daddy Issues

**Author's Note:** Sorry about the ridiculous wait. I've had this chapter written for at least a week, but I haven't had a functioning computer to post it on. But, finally, it is time. It's a short chapter, but we've got plenty of fun coming afterwards.

* * *

 **Chapter Six: Daddy Issues**

John found himself almost wishing that Dean would just shout and cuss and rage at him. Anything would be better than his son just standing there with his arms crossed, glaring silently at him.

"What do you want me to say, Dean?" John asked after a long, uncomfortable stretch of silence.

"I want to hear your explanation as to why you think you can talk to her like that," Dean said flatly.

"Dean…" John started weakly, but he had no idea what to say next. Mary's words wouldn't quit echoing around in his head. _We will lose our sons…we will lose them, John…_

His eldest son just raised his eyebrows, unimpressed. "I'm waiting."

"I didn't mean to be so harsh, Dean," John finally got out. "I never meant to upset you, or Sam. I just…"

"You just what? I honestly want to know," Dean snapped. "I want to know what it is about Julie that makes you so angry you are willing to insult a woman you don't even know and have no reason to hate."

"I don't hate her," John admitted. "I just…I don't see eye to eye with her. And I don't approve of what she's done to you and Sam."

"Yeah, what kind of horrible person would pick up your broken sons and help them put themselves back together?" Dean spat, the sarcasm dripping from his voice. "What kind of monster would die to save your son? I mean, after all the ways she's taken care of us, how could you not hate her?!"

"This!" John snapped, his anger getting the better of him. "You were never like this, Dean. Not to me. To monsters, sure, but not to your own father. But whatever this girl has done to you, she's changed you. And not for the better."

"Why? Because she finally taught me to grow a spine and stand up for myself?" Dean shouted. "If you hate her because she taught me to have the strength to actually stand up to you, then the problem is not with her."

"I know I'm not perfect, Dean, but at least I tried! I did my best to take care of my sons and raise them up to be good men. And you used to understand that. You looked up to me, Dean. You loved me, but now…she's in your head. She's made you hate me."

"For the love of God…I don't hate you, Dad!" Dean cried. "You're my father, and I'm always going to love you. But you cannot talk to Julie like that. You just can't. You have to be respectful and kind and understanding like she had been to you-"

John snorted derisively. "That girl was as far from respectful and kind as she could have been-"

"The hell she was!" Dean shouted, his anger surprising John. "Julie was polite and patient with you the whole time you were rude and angry. You're just mad she actually had the guts to stand up to you, unlike me. But I'm done with that, Dad. This is the way it's going to be. You're going to apologize to her and behave civilly from now on."

"I will admit that I was probably a little harsher than I needed to be," John sighed. "But I can't apologize for the way I feel, Dean."

"You can and you will," Dean growled. "And if you don't, then Sam and I are going to have no choice but to stop seeing you."

John tried to hide his fear behind a forced laugh. "Dean, I'm your father. You're not going to cut me out of your life over some girl."

"I will if I have to. And so will Sam." Dean was dangerously confident, and John's fear was beginning to grow. Then Dean softened ever so slightly. "I don't want to lose you, Dad. You're my father, and I love you. But I love her, and if you can't respect that…"

The two men faced off for a moment. "Why her?" John finally asked wearily. "She's pretty enough but…why her?"

Dean sighed. "I wish you would just give her a chance, Dad. Then you could see why. She's amazing, she really is. Brilliant and tough and kind and funny and likable…"

John couldn't stop a short snort from escaping her. Dean's eyes narrowed. "She is, Dad. Every person she's ever met has loved her. And if you would just give her a chance, I'm sure you would too."

But John's face stayed blank. Dean sighed in irritation. "Why can't you just give her a chance, Dad? What is it about her that you hate so much?"

"She's a threat, Dean!" John suddenly burst out. "She is." He took a deep breath to steady himself. "You…you love her, you and Sam both. I see that now. She matters more to you than your own father, and that…scares me. You boys don't need me anymore, but you need her. And if she said she didn't like me, if she asked you…you would leave me. You would."

Dean blinked at the real fear in his father's eyes. "She wouldn't ask that, Dad," he said almost gently. "I'll admit, she's not a huge fan of how you parented us. But she would never want to divide our family. All Julie wants is for me and Sammy to be happy. She's not a threat, Dad. Not unless you make her one."

John was silent for a long moment, and then the last bit of fight went out of him. "I'm sorry, Dean," he admitted softly. "I never meant to hurt you, or Sam, or…or even her. My anger got the best of me, and I said things that I didn't really mean."

"I forgive you, Dad," Dean said after a moment. John's heart started to lift a little, but there was still a hint of danger in his son's eyes. His heart sank as Dean finished, "But I'm not the one you need to apologize to…"

* * *

Julie looked up in surprise as the Roadhouse door swung open, and Dean walked in. He was back surprisingly fast. Hopefully that was a good thing. He didn't look furious, so that was a good sign.

She stood up and started to move towards him, Sam two steps behind her. But Julie stopped abruptly when John Winchester walked into the bar behind Dean.

His words hadn't quite left her head, and a little surge of anger went through her at the sight of John's face. But Julie forced herself to relax a little. The fact that John was here with Dean and they weren't throttling each other was a good sign.

For a moment, Sam and Julie faced John and Dean in a tense, uncertain silence. Then Julie swallowed and forced a smile at Dean. "Hey," she said carefully.

"Hi." He walked away from John to give her a quick peck on the cheek. Then Dean straightened up and turned to give John a pointed look. "I believe my father has something he would like to say to you, Jules."

Julie and Sam looked to John expectantly. "In front of everyone?" John asked uncertainly, glancing over at Ellen and Ash, who were watching from behind the bar.

"Yep," Dean said confidently.

John cleared his throat and shifted uncomfortably with five pairs of eyes on him. But eventually he was able to lift his eyes enough to meet Julie's. Then he took a deep breath and said quietly, "I'm sorry. I am. I didn't mean all that, and I just…I've been an ass to you, Ms. Carters. And I'm sorry for that."

There was a brief moment of silence, and then Julie said genuinely, "I forgive you, John. I really do. And I really am sorry that you don't like me. Hopefully, one day that might change, but until then I promise I will keep my distance from you, let you have some time with your sons without me there."

Dean and Sam both looked less than thrilled with that compromise, but to everyone's surprise, it was John who blurted, "No! No, that…that won't be necessary. I've been unreasonable lately. And if you're willing to move past this…I am too. You're a part of their lives now, and I just need to accept that."

Julie nodded gratefully. "Thank you," she said softly, and he nodded slightly back at her.

"You know, John, you're welcome to stick around here with us," she suggested kindly.

"That's very kind, but I think it would be best if I went and found Mary and let you three have some time to yourselves," John said. He paused to shoot one last apologetic look at Sam and Dean, and then he turned and left the Roadhouse.

Everyone was silent for a long moment, and then Ash said, "That actually went pretty well."

The tension left the room instantly as everyone laughed lightly and began to talk all at once. Sam and Julie pestered Dean with questions about what had happened between him and John to cause such a sudden change in John's attitude, but Dean didn't really feel like discussing it at the moment.

"I'm just glad things are okay right now," Sam admitted, and Julie and Dean both murmured in agreement.

"You know what?" Dean said after a moment. "We've been in heaven for a little while and we haven't had nearly enough fun!"

"Too much drama," Julie muttered in agreement.

"What were you thinking of doing, Dean?" Sam asked brightly.

"Well, we've spent quite a bit of time with Dad since we get here," his older brother said, starting to smile. "But I don't think we've spent nearly enough time with the other man who raised us."

Sam's face lit up. Even Julie knew what Dean was suggesting, and she smiled eagerly. Dean grinned down at her and said, "You know, Jules, I think it's about time you get to know Bobby Singer."


End file.
